NASW-NY is asking members to take action in support of Daniel’s Law (S.3670/A.4697), legislation that would fundamentally shift New York’s response to mental health and substance use crises away from law enforcement and toward a public health-led model centered on care, dignity, and de-escalation.

Daniel’s Law is named in honor of Daniel Prude, a Black man who died during a police response to a mental health crisis in Rochester in 2020. Too often, people experiencing psychiatric distress are met by police rather than trained mental health professionals, and crisis calls can escalate into preventable trauma, injury, arrest, or worse. Daniel’s Law advances a safer, health-centered approach that aligns with social work values and strengthens crisis response systems statewide.

NASW-NY is urging members to complete an Act Now message to their State Senator and Assembly Member today.

This Act Now asks legislators to support and advance S.3670/A.4697 and help establish a statewide emergency and crisis response infrastructure that creates a dedicated Emergency and Crisis Response Council to design and oversee non-police crisis response teams, ensures coordination with both 911 and 988 so trained personnel can be dispatched quickly, and supports implementation through regional pilots and a Behavioral Health Crisis Technical Assistance Center. The Act Now also highlights the bill’s requirement that at least 51% of council members and advisory participants be individuals with lived experience or their family members, ensuring crisis-response standards are shaped by those most directly affected.

Please take a moment to send the message. Legislators pay close attention when they hear directly from constituents, and member outreach is one of the most effective ways to move priority legislation.

Thank you for taking action and helping ensure that New Yorkers in crisis are met with care, not criminalization.